A mortar shell fired from Afghanistan hit a house in a border village in northwest Pakistan Sunday, killing seven people who were members of the same family, officials said. "The mortar fired from Afghanistan hit the house of local villager Fazal Ghani. He along with his wife and five other members of the family died on spot," senior police official Gulzar Khan told AFP.

The dead included three women, three children and the head of the family. The incident took place in Batwaar Bangro village, some 50 kilometre from Khar, the main town of Bajaur tribal district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Khan said police and rescue officials helped the villagers retrieve dead bodies when they reached the site. "The house (was) completely destroyed in the attack," Khan said.